


Beyond the Distance of Time

by samariumwriting



Category: Fire Emblem Echoes: Mou Hitori no Eiyuu Ou | Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia, Fire Emblem Series
Genre: Gen, Sibling Bonding, Trans Celica, Trans Conrad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-22
Updated: 2020-12-22
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:59:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,122
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28245804
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/samariumwriting/pseuds/samariumwriting
Summary: Back when the roles of prince and princess were reversed, Conrad and Celica liked to play pretend. They tired very quickly of the roles they took in games with all the others - Conrad hated playing the princess, and Celica hated playing the prince.Instead, they were warrior siblings, fighting against innumerable faceless and invisible hordes. They fought the empty air with sticks masquerading as swords, and tore through the castle grounds in search of imagined treasure until their clothes were torn and stained away from their original pale pink and blue.
Relationships: Anthiese | Celica & Conrad
Comments: 2
Kudos: 8





	Beyond the Distance of Time

**Author's Note:**

> This piece was for Rally Spectrum+, the second volume of the @rallyspeczine! It was an absolute pleasure to write for this zine and it meant a whole lot to me ;-;

Conrad tore through the remaining troops at the stronghold faster than he’d ever managed before. He could see the Duma Faithful ahead of him, knew that he was trying to persuade his sister to throw her life away, and he couldn’t let it happen. Couldn’t so much as bear the thought of it. And then when Celica said that none of them could understand how she felt, he couldn’t stay silent.

“I understand, as only a brother can,” he announced. “For I am...Conrad. It’s been a long time, huh Sis?” It felt strange to speak those words to her, finally, after all that time apart, all the time hidden. It felt strange, but good.

Celica’s mouth dropped open, and Conrad could hazard a guess as to why. The last time he’d seen her—when they went to bed on the night of that fateful fire—he had not borne that name. She had not borne hers. There was a child named Conrad and a child named Celica in that household, but...

The truth of the past settled between them uncomfortably as they made their way onwards, the reunion only half complete. There was more they needed to do, and the trivial (they were not trivial, would never be trivial) facts of their shared childhood would have to wait.

The time came when they were lost in the forest - stumbling around in circles gave them little else to do. “You’re a little different from how I remember you,” Celica said, her laugh high and clear despite the thick fog surrounding them.

“You are as well,” Conrad commented, fiddling with the hem of his cape. He knew he was different. He was  _ very _ different.

There was a pause. The silence stretched on between them for a moment, interrupted only by the sound of Boey complaining about something or other behind them. “Maybe we should stop avoiding the topic,” Celica said eventually.

“Perhaps we should.”

Back when the roles of prince and princess were reversed, Conrad and Celica liked to play pretend. They tired very quickly of the roles they took in games with all the others - Conrad hated playing the princess, and Celica hated playing the prince.

Instead, they were warrior siblings, fighting against innumerable faceless and invisible hordes. They fought the empty air with sticks masquerading as swords, and tore through the castle grounds in search of imagined treasure until their clothes were torn and stained away from their original pale pink and blue.

Their other favourite game was swapping identities. They looked relatively similar, especially for half siblings, and there was a certain thrill to pretending to be the other. Conrad would be Celica and Celica would be Conrad, and they delighted in the sound of the other’s name being shouted in their direction.

It was an innocent game for children whose parents paid far too little attention to them, but it was something more too. Something special.

“It seems predictable, now,” Conrad said with a laugh. He knew Celica was recalling the same memories he was.

“How did you come to...work it all out?” Celica asked.

Conrad paused for a moment. He’d never really spoken about it before. “I spent a lot of time studying on my own,” he said, “and a lot of time around people who didn’t care how I presented myself. I suppose one day it just clicked, and no one really questioned it.”

“That makes a lot of sense,” his sister replied. His sister. Getting used to thinking of her that way had taken less time than he’d expected; maybe he’d known all along.

“How did you come to realise yourself?” he asked.

“It was about...safety,” Celica decided. “When half the knights of the realm were searching for a missing prince, the logical conclusion was for me to wear a dress. The eyes of strangers passed right over me, and as I grew I asked if I could keep up that pretence, that disguise. At some point, I admitted to myself that it wasn’t one.”

“I’m glad you had that chance,” Conrad replied. Celica hummed, and silence fell again. There was more to be said, but the fog was starting to clear, and there was much to be done. The rest of the conversation could wait for another day.

* * *

“A lot has changed since we were here last,” Celica mused, her eyes roaming the palace grounds. The war was at an end, finally, but some scars remained. The flowerbeds were very new, despite the season; they’d been put in after the old ones were uprooted by the coup.

Conrad’s gaze fell on the little ledge he had once knocked a jug of water off, three floors up. The window behind the ledge was boarded up, glass too expensive to produce in a time of war. When the jug had crashed to the ground, smashing and leaving a frightful mess, Celica had comforted him. He wondered if she would do the same for him now everything was different.

“With everything that’s changed…” Conrad’s voice came out softer than he wanted it to, but he continued, “do you think we’ve grown apart?”

Celica looked back up at him, and the expression on her face was- confused. “Not at all!” she said firmly. “The bond we share now is just as close as the one we had as children. I may no longer be able to be your little brother, but- personally I don’t think I ever was.”

Conrad smiled. He quite...well, he quite liked the reminder that he was a big brother. It was a role he’d been denied for so long. “It makes me happy to hear that,” he said. “I’m glad to have that place in your life and for it to no longer be a game. And perhaps one day, I can take up the role of an uncle.”

Celica flushed bright pink and raised her hands to cover her cheeks. “Shh!” she exclaimed, laughing. “I haven’t brought up that kind of possibility with him yet.”

Conrad smiled slyly. “I can recommend a highly skilled magical practitioner, if you ever do want to take that option.” That had certainly been a benefit of spending his adolescence in a village known for magic.

“You know what?” Celica asked, a grin forming on her face. Conrad cocked his head, prompting her answer. “You can stop being my big brother now. I’ve had quite enough of that teasing.”

Conrad pouted at her, and Celica burst into laughter. Yes, things were different for the both of them now. But compared to a childhood where their happiness came from pretending… Their new, changed lives were nothing but authentic, and their bond was all the stronger for it.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! :) if you enjoyed, please consider leaving a kudos/comment. I also have a twitter @samariumwriting


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